Replacing the 7805-era linear regulator with an efficient switching regulator.
13 repair logs
+34 photosSuccessful repairNEC — PC Engine LT
An epic of strife, perseverance and adaptation. The NEC PC Engine LT is the 1991 laptop-format PC Engine with a built-in colour LCD. Almost always dead from cap leakage. This one needed a full recap, a new voltage regulator, and an off-the-shelf voltage inverter module to replace the T500 LCD bias transformer, killed by the electrolyte. Without that, the screen stays dark.
+7 photosNEC — PC Engine IFU-30
Capacitors, voltage regulator and the supercapacitor that keeps the save data alive on this NEC PC Engine IFU-30 interface unit. Validated with Street Fighter II and Bomberman '94.
+6 photosNEC — PC Engine CoreGrafx
A quick pre-dinner recap on this NEC PC Engine CoreGrafx, plus the standard 7805 voltage regulator replacement and jailbar fix caps thrown in for good measure. Short job.
+5 photosNintendo — Super Famicom
Yellowed Nintendo Super Famicom (SHVC-001) given an electrical refresh rather than a cosmetic one. Replaced the voltage regulator and recapped the board (a few SMD values were missing on the day, so some caps are left as a future task), and touched up the solder on the controller ports and power jack. Smoke tested clean with Yoshi's Island. The shell was left yellowed, no retrobrite.
+17 photosSega — Master System
Full treatment for a Japanese Sega Master System MK-2000 belonging to a friend: new caps, 7805 voltage regulator, thermal paste, cleaned connectors and controllers. Sent on its way looking and playing like new.
+20 photosNintendo — Super Famicom Jr.
Full refresh on this well-kept Nintendo Super Famicom Jr. (SHVC-101): recap, 7805 voltage regulator swap, shell clean, and a Borti4938 RGB bypass board install with brightness and ghosting fix component swaps.
+12 photosNintendo — AV Famicom
This Nintendo AV Famicom (HVC-101) arrived with a gray screen and a catastrophically oxidised cartridge slot. A good clean fixed the boot issue; a full recap and 7805 voltage regulator replacement took care of the rest.
+3 photosSega — Mega Drive II
My NTSC-J Sega Mega Drive II (second unit), brought up to spec with a self-assembled Triple Bypass V2 Plus mod by Zaxour for cleaner RGB and audio output, plus a 7805 voltage regulator replacement.
+2 photosSega — Master System II
Recap and a 7805 voltage regulator swap on an already RGB-modified Sega Master System II, refreshing the ageing electrolytics and the power regulation in one pass.
+11 photosNEC — PC Engine SuperGrafx
Full maintenance on a NEC PC Engine SuperGrafx: a recap, a voltage regulator swap and jailbar-fix caps. Now pairs nicely with an EDFX in a mini-IFU shell.
+7 photosSuccessful repairSega — Mega Drive II
Triple Bypass V2 Plus mod by Zaxour (self-assembled) installed on a Sega Mega Drive II (first unit), along with a 7805 voltage regulator replacement. The Triple Bypass mod cleans up the RGB and audio output paths.
+6 photosSega — Mark III
Recap and 7805 voltage regulator replacement on this Sega Mark III, plus a first attempt at retrobriting. Not perfect, but a marked improvement on the yellowed shell.
+18 photosSega — SG-1000 II
Quick recap, 7805 voltage regulator replacement and retrobriting session on this Sega SG-1000 II. RF-only output means a black-and-white picture using composite on a PAL TV, so a composite video mod is on the future list.
